Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Flourless Almond Butter Cookies - Guest Post

Hello Laura Likes Design readers! My name is Dana and I’m the author behind My Little Celebration - a food, fitness and lifestyle blog that I’ve been writing for about a year now and loving.

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I’m 24 years old and newly-married. I love writing, food, and fitness, and I thoroughly enjoy recording glimpses of my life in the kitchen, at the gym and wherever else life takes me on my little blog.
The reason I write this post is, a while back Laura invited her readers to submit a guest post for her blog. And because I think Laura is adorable and her blog is, too - I jumped at the chance!

So, today I’m bringing you a fun and easy recipe for flourless almond butter cookies.
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Yum, right? I’d never tried making these cookies before, but after doing a little research online I found a recipe that I could modify a bit in order to experiment with the flavor a bit more.

Although I haven’t always been a huge fan of almond butter, I’ve recently been trying different varieties and even making some of my own at home, and in the process I’ve developed quite a taste for it!
It’s so healthy, nutty and delicious, and extremely versatile for topping off yummy treats and mixing into baked goods. I hope to use it more in my kitchen as I (slowly) become a more adventurous cook.
Alright, enough talk. Here is my recipe along with a few photos for a better idea of what the cooking and preparation process looks like. Enjoy!

Flourless Almond Butter Cookies

Recipe adapted from Tasty Eats at Home, via Gluten Free Easily
yields about 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients
  • 1 c raw almond butter (ground from toasted almonds)
  • 1 c brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp. cinnamon (optional)
  • sugar, chocolate chips, cocoa powder and raw almonds for coating/topping
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and either lightly grease or line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Next, scoop about 2 cups of raw almonds into a large skillet and toast them over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until they are golden brown (about 10 minutes).

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Then pour the toasted almonds into a food processor and grind them for about 10 minutes, scraping down the sides occasionally, until they form creamy almond butter.

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Measure out 1 cup of almond butter and scoop it into a large mixing bowl. Place any reserve butter in a jar for other use.

Add the rest of the ingredients to the bowl and mix well. Grease or moisten your hands slightly and form the dough into 1-inch balls. Try rolling a few in sugar and cocoa powder. Stuff a few with a chocolate chips. And top a few with a raw almond, if desired, for added garnish and flavor.

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Place balls on cookie sheet - don’t press down. Bake 8-10 minutes or until golden brown and cookies look “set” - they won’t look done. Allow the cookies to rest on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes. Remove carefully and allow to finish cooling on a rack.

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From left is a row of chocolate chip-stuffed, original, almond, and original again.

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From left this is more chocolate chip-stuffed, cocoa dusted and sugar dusted. The cocoa cookies have a slight touch of decadence to them, and the sugar dusted cookies have just the right amount of sweetness to make them a little more irresistible.

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The ones stuffed with a chocolate chip turned out ooey, gooey and melty in the middle. So good.

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And the cookies with an almond on top were simple, delicious and provided an extra crunch and bit of substance. This could almost be considered a healthy protein cookie, right? : )

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I served these cookies at my sister’s baby shower and they were very popular. The platter was empty by the time I left so I knew the recipe was a success.

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If I had to pick a favorite, it would be the sugar-dusted version. It stole my heart! It tasted very much like a peanut butter cookie (only more almondish) and the sugar sweetened it just enough to give it a bit more of a cookie feel.

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But they were all great and I’ll definitely be making them again. I’d also recommend these as a great option for those following a gluten-free diet as they are completely flour free.

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Alright, back to the kitchen! I must find more uses for almond butter. This stuff is just too good!
Ciao, Dana

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